i FINALLY made a souffle! i don't know what i was so scared of all this time (well the obvious.. the souffles not rising) but after making these lemon + thyme souffles that fear is ALL gone. they were super simple to execute as long as you follow the directions step by step. the most important part is to not deflate the egg whites when you fold them into the thick batter! if you are intimidated at the thought of a souffle, seriously try this recipe. i promise all your fears will vanish. the lemon & thyme flavour is subtle, but strong enough that i felt topping them with a cream sauce was unnecessary. just a generous dusting of powdered sugar paired with a dollop of fresh whipped cream or a scoop of french vanilla ice cream on the side. i can't wait to try a chocolate souffle next or a savoury cheese one! oh, the possibilities are endless.
i baked these lemon thyme souffles in the prettiest [made in france] porcelaine ramekins from REVOL 1978. they have a very earthy & natural look to them compared to a classic white ramekin. plus, they look great on the open shelving we installed this weekend (i will be showing those off very soon). they were also the perfect size to make individual souffles in because i'm sure you know by now i love serving everything in mini or individual portions! they present so much better this way. i served them on REVOL's colour lab gourmet serving board with the matching colour lab cup. the square serving board makes for the perfect dessert or appetizer plate. the colour lab collection comes in all sorts of colours, but it only seemed fitting that i went with grey, right? all of REVOL's kitchenware is made with quality in mind & i just love each piece that i own. remember that gorgeous grey tart pan i made the salted chocolate tart in last summer?
p.s. you can check out REVOL's beautiful selection of kitchenwares here. next on my list is one of those crumbled coffee mugs!
ingredients
- 1 + 1/4 cup 10% cream, divided
- 1/3 + 2 tablespoons sugar, divided
- 3 egg yolks
- 1/3 cup all purpose flour
- zest from 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon thyme, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 egg whites
- powdered sugar, for dusting
directions
- preheat oven to 350 degrees. butter & sugar each ramekin.
- in a saucepot over low heat add 1 cup of cream. bring to a low simmer.
- in a mixing bowl whisk remaining cream, 1/3 cup sugar, egg yolks, flour, lemon zest & thyme.
- temper in mixture to the heated cream & place back on the stove top. whisk constantly until mixture thickens, about 60 seconds. remove from heat, stir in butter & vanilla. let cool while you prepare the egg whites.
- whisk egg whites to a soft peak. add remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar and whisk to a stiff peak.
- gently fold (do not stir) in egg whites to the cooled batter.
- divide evenly between the six ramekins & bake for 20 minutes. or until the souffles puff.
- dust with powdered sugar & serve immediately.
